


A Moment Too Late

by EonaMokaa



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: And yet here i am to give her pain, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, It isn't overly graphic (or at least i don't think so) but i put the warning there just in case, Major Character Injury, Pidge deserves better, Protective Lance (Voltron), Some stabby things happen, consider yourself warned, oh well, plance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-24
Updated: 2018-09-04
Packaged: 2019-07-01 19:17:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15780402
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EonaMokaa/pseuds/EonaMokaa
Summary: It happened faster than she could process. In an instant she was being slammed against the wall, breath knocked out and terrified. Pidge knew full well what the Galra did with prisoners; she'd had enough people close to her go through years of pain, had seen the lifeless look in the eyes of those they rescued after being captive for who knows how long. But the generals weren't like other Galra officers, they were unpredictable, and Pidge knew the moment that Ezor grabbed her by the collar that she was screwed.Or, what if Coran was too late and Pidge actually got hurt during that one interrogation scene?





	1. Chapter 1

It happened faster than she could process. In an instant she was being slammed against the wall, breath knocked out and _terrified_. Pidge knew full well what the Galra did with prisoners; she'd had enough people close to her go through years of pain, had seen the lifeless look in the eyes of those they rescued after being captive for who knows how long. But the generals weren't like other Galra officers, they were unpredictable, and Pidge knew the moment that Ezor grabbed her by the collar that she was _screwed_. 

 

"I'm willing to bet that the paladins have a soft spot for the little one." Ezor practically hissed, staring into Pidge's eyes with a bloodthirstiness that she'd never seen before. With her free hand, Ezor gently cupped Pidge's cheek, light brushes contrasting the look of destruction she radiated. 

 

"Don't you touch her!" Lance shouted, the words escaping him before he had time to process what was happening. He tried to stand up and knock Ezor away, but Zethrid was quicker than he was, shoving him back to the cell floor with a swift kick to the chest. Pidge struggled to break free of Ezor's grasp, kicking and clawing at her arms, but the cool metal of a blade at her neck forced her to stop.

 

Pidge swallowed back the cry that threatened to escape her lips. Fear replaced the anger she felt and she closed her eyes, biting back the tears that almost fell down her cheeks. Deep breaths, Pidge told herself in an effort to calm down. It didn't work.

 

"Now, let's get back to business." Ezor growled, and Pidge briefly wondered what had happened for her to change from the usual bubbly attitude to this. She didn't think on it too long though. "What happened to Lotor? Why didn't he come out of the rift after you?" Nothing but silence followed, and Pidge opened her eyes to find Ezor scowling. The blade that had previously been pointed at her neck shifted lower, near her right side. Pidge flinched, debating whether or not to struggle or stay completely still.

 

"You're going to regret that. Silence means punishment!" Ezor snarled, and the sickening sound of a blade peircing flesh filled the cell. Pidge's eyes went wide, searing pain shooting through her side, hot and blinding. She whimpered, shouts of her name filling the cell but distant in her mind, trying to focus on anything other than the fact that she'd just been _stabbed_. Ezor smiled, a wicked grin that would likely haunt Pidge in the nights to come, and pulled the blade out slowly in a side to side manner. Pidge felt ready to black out when she heard an explosion right outside their cell, and Ezor unceremoniously threw her to the ground with a curse. 

 

"We need to go. Now!" Zethrid shouted, already making her way out into the hallway, and Ezor followed suit shortly after. 

 

Pidge blacked out to the feeling of being cold and cradled in someone's arms, shaking as they tried to comfort and stop the bleeding at the same time. The last thing she heard before darkness surrounded her was Lance crying, begging her to stay awake until they made it out to safety. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A good number of people were interested in another chapter, so here it is~ I hope you guys enjoy it *u*
> 
> Pidge deals with the aftermath of being stabbed.

Pidge awoke to the feeling of hands carding delicately but shakily through her hair. She was vaguely aware of the fact that she was currently laying down with her head in someone's lap, but the stinging in her side stopped her from thinking about it too much. Wincing, she gently placed her hand on her injured side, glad to find that someone had wrapped it with bandages. _Well, so much for it being a bad dream_ , Pidge mused. 

 

"Pidge? You're awake?" A familiar voice, quiet and comforting yet also anxious, pulled her back into focus. It was Lance, no doubt about it, but everything about him seemed exhausted, muted. "Oh thank god, I thought...nevermind. Are you okay?" 

 

Pidge wanted to laugh at that, but opted for rolling her eyes instead. "Yeah, just peachy." 

 

"I'm serious, Pidge! You got _stabbed_ , for fuck's sake! You could've-" Lance cut himself off, feeling the telltale knot in his throat forming before he could say any more. "I'm sorry...none of this should have happened to you. I should've tried harder to stop them, should've done _anything_ if it meant you would be safe-"

 

"Lance. Look at me." Pidge interrupted, voice firm and steady. "It wasn't your fault. Let it go."

 

"But I-" Lance interjected, but was quickly shot down.

 

"What would you have done, Lance?" Pidge couldn't help the frustration in her tone, but she wasn't about to sit by watching him blame himself over and over again for things he didn't do. "Fight Lotor's generals so they'd let me go and then what?! Get stabbed like I did? This is _war_ , Lance, we can't expect to get by without injuries! This is the last time I'm going to repeat myself on this matter, so listen closely. _It. Wasn't. Your. Fault._ " 

 

Lance was at a loss for words. He knew she was right, but that didn't make their situation any better. She was still hurt, probably in a good deal of pain, and here she was trying to comfort _him_. Talk about messed up.

 

"So now that _that_ conversation is out of the way," Pidge mumbled, "where are we anyway?" 

 

"We're in Blue's cockpit." Lance replied, and unsure of what to do, starting combing through her hair with his fingers again. He almost didn't notice how she leaned into the touch. Almost. "We're still a far ways from Earth, and with the castle gone, well...none of us were sure where to go up until recently. You still need proper medical attention, and since we're left without cryopods, there's not a whole lot we can do. However, Allura did mention that we're close enough to Olkarion to get help there without veering too much off course. They should be able to fix you up, no problem." Lance saw the way Pidge's eyes lit up with excitement at that, still slightly unfocused, but he smiled regardless. "Who knows, maybe you'll be able to see their city once and for all?"

 

"That would be nice." Pidge hummed, and despite the pain radiating from her side, she allowed Lance's slow hair combing and quiet humming to lull her into a peaceful sleep. She wouldn't admit it, but as long as he was around, she knew everything would turn out fine in the end. 


	3. Chapter 3

It had been nearly a week since Pidge had fully recovered from the incident. The Olkarians didn't have magic healing pods like the castle, but their medical tech ranked pretty high up there. Apparently, they had special bandages made with soft and flexible fibers from their trees, and using their connection to nature, could pulse energy through the wound so it would heal faster and ease the pain. If you asked Pidge, though, it still counted as magic, among the other things she didn't quite understand. 

 

Despite having been physically healed, Pidge was still rattled. She flinched whenever someone moved closed to her too fast, or when Lance would try to flirt with her and his hand would brush her neck slightly. She absolutely _hated_ it. But that wasn't her newest problem to deal with, apparently; what started as a peaceful nap at some ungodly hour in the morning quickly turned into a very vivid recollection of what happened, but she couldn't wake herself up from the hellish nightmare.

 

_Firm, tight pressure around her throat, breathing too shallow and wow, she needed air, and soon-_

 

_A shout, her name? Everything sounded distant. A cackle, a devilish grin that bore into her very being, the cool edge of a metal blade against her neck. Punishment? What-_

 

_A sickening sound, something tearing at her insides, god there's so much blood-_

 

" _Stop_!" Pidge's shout broke the illusion, quickly sitting up and catching a deep breath. Her heart was going a mile a minute, and she was vaguely aware of how her hair and shirt stuck to her skin. Shuddering, Pidge took in her surroundings; she was back in her room, no prison cells or injuries to worry about. She didn't hesitate in getting up and leaving her room, knowing where she would feel most comfortable and who would welcome her with open arms.

 

Even with the dimmed lighting in the Olkari hallways, she knew where she was going- it wasn't the first time she'd left her room in favor of company. So, when she arrived outside Lance's door, she walked right in without bothering to knock. If he had a problem with it, he could suck it up. She figured he'd be asleep at this hour- he was always going on about getting his beauty sleep for at least 8 hours- but she was surprised to find him laying down and listening to music, tossing a ball towards the ceiling. 

 

"Pidge? What's up?" Lance asked, taking 'his' (stolen from Pidge) headphones off and scooting over on the bed to give her room.

 

"I don't really want to talk about it." She replied, voice low as she crawled onto the bed next to him. She moved to his side, curling into his chest and relishing in his warmth. Almost on instinct, he pulled her closer, hugging her tight to him and resting his head above hers.

 

"Nightmares?" He asked after a long pause. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, but just know that I'm here to listen." 

 

Pidge didn't want to talk about it, not really, but she knew it wouldn't do any good to bottle it up inside."I just...can't stop thinking about it. Of how it could've been so much worse than it was, and yet I'm _still_ scared. You'd think that I'd be used to it by now, since this isn't the first time someone's been hurt, but..." 

 

"It's okay to be scared, Pidge. Nobody could go through that and _not_ be scared or shaken up. Not even Shiro, probably." Lance hummed, rubbing circles on Pidge's back. "And besides, no matter what we face in the future, I promise I won't let you get hurt again." 

 

Pidge flushed at that, her face getting rather warm. She smiled, peppering light kisses along Lance's jaw, and allowed herself to fall asleep, calm in Lance's warm and safe embrace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading and commenting! It really means a lot to see comments and kudos and all that, and it always makes my day~

**Author's Note:**

> I'm debating possibly adding another chapter to this, but honestly I'm not sure. It would be centered around her recovery if I do (because she isn't dead or anything, I'm not that cruel - they just have a lack of cryopods to help the process along) so let me know if you guys are interested!


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